Mace Griffin is a sci-fi first-person shooter released in 2003 for the Xbox, Playstation 2, and PC. It features both on-foot shooting and starfighter combat (with seamless transition between the two), and stars Henry Rollins as the titular Mace Griffin.
400 years in the future, mankind has taken to the stars, colonized planets and made contact with alien life. The recent discovery of the Vagner system has attracted numerous corporations looking to mine its resources, turning the once empty system into a new frontier. The corporations formed the Enforcers to maintain order in the system, but they weren’t quite up to the task, so the High Senate formed the Rangers to keep the law and protect against the likes of pirates and smugglers. You play as Mace Griffin, who used to serve as a Ranger, until an assignment went wrong and his unit was wiped out. Being blamed for the debacle, Mace served ten years in prison. Now he’s become a bounty hunter, looking to wreak vengeance on the people who wronged him.
Mace Griffin: Bounty Hunter provides examples of:
- Beast Man: The two alien races seen most prominently in the game are the Jaldari, who resemble hairy gorillas, and the Valleakan, who are reptilian in appearance.
- Bounty Hunter: After getting out of prison, Mace joins the Guild of Bounty Hunters, which was formed after the Rangers disbanded.
- Giant Mook: Jaldari enemies are larger and tougher than Humans or Valleakans, but also somewhat slower.
- Ludicrous Gibs: You can use explosives to blow enemies into small meaty chunks.
- Machine Worship: The Order of Virtual Light worship technology and wear masks that link them to their Temple Ship’s mainframe. Unfortunately, someone has hacked that mainframe and the acolytes have gone berserk.
- MegaCorp: The Tannan Corporation is working hard exploiting the Vagner system’s resources. It also turns out they're behind the Order of Virtual Light, which is a front to provide human hosts they can sell to the Watchers.
- Mole in Charge: Richter, Mace's commanding officer in the Rangers, turns out to be on the Tannan Corp's payroll and is the one truly responsible for the death of Mace's Ranger squad.
- Old-School Dogfight: Mace can pilot several ships and engage in space combat. Notably, you can walk into a ship, move around inside it, and fly the ship from inside the cockpit seamlessly, with no loading screens or transitions.
- Puppeteer Parasite: The Watchers are a race of non-corporeal parasites that inhabit the bodies of flesh and blood organisms in order to control them. They turn out to be the Big Bads of the game.
- Sole Survivor: At the start of the game Mace's squad of Rangers is wiped out. Ten Years later, the entire organization has been dissolved.
- Starship Luxurious: At one point Mace becomes the bodyguard to a wealthy client aboard the Utari Cloudwatcher, a luxury cruise liner.
